I hadn't really planned anything for dinner tonight, but tomorrow we're having company and I needed to go to the grocery store. So, while walking around the supermarket I asked Shannon what she wanted for dinner. Mangoes happened to be on sale, so we picked up a couple and she said she wanted Madras Curry Penne. I had tried making this for her before with semi-disastrous results, but I decided to try it again. See, there's a particular flavor she has in mind for what this madras curry penne is supposed to taste like. That is, exactly like the one on the menu at Moxies restaurant. Unfortunately, they don't offer a recipe, just the ingredients, and I have to basically make up the rest as I go along.

After grilling her (not literally) for the flavor I'm trying to go for, I start to prepare the sauce. I start toasting cumin and coriander seeds and she starts wondering what's going on. I explain that I'm preparing ingredients for the pasta sauce and she politely explains that I'm doing it all wrong. I do what any decent man would do and tell her that a woman has no place in the kitchen (okay, that's a bit of a dramatization, I ask her to slice a mango) and proceed to make what tastes like spiced vinegar. She approves, but only because I look like I'm about to cry.

I throw the Grilled Lemon Ginger Chicken (which is great for a salad or pasta dish like this, by the way) on the grill, something I know I'm unlikely to screw up, and forget about it for a couple of minutes while I heat up a pan for the Mango Chutney. I make 2 separate batches, 1 simple with nothing but brown sugar and chili flakes for Shannon, and another one with a few more ingredients for myself. The chutney, if I do say so myself, is a very good recipe. It ends up being what tops the pasta in the end, so its flavor is key. For those of you that don't know, chutney is sort of like a spiced relish that is usually made from fruit. It's often used as an accompaniment for meats or with rice or whatever. Think of it like American relish or cranberry sauce.

After it was all said and done, somehow I managed to concoct something that tastes like what I was going for. She said the sauce was a bit tart, but when all of the elements were combined it was almost perfect. Perhaps this is by fluke or perhaps it's because I'm becoming more familiar with these spices in the kitchen. It's about time, really. When I first met Shannon I had the opportunity to introduce her to a wide variety of new flavors. I cooked her dinner after dinner of things she'd never had before; like pesto, roasted red peppers, and so on. The first thing she introduced me to was curry. She pulled a recipe off the internet and we picked up the ingredients and made curried chicken. It was delicious, she said it was perfect and I've been craving it ever since. I even enjoy the smell of curry as it seeps out of my pores like a sweet ginger deodorant, but that's probably a little too much information.

I came across a link entitled The Truth about Peanut Sauce and had to read it. It had an aura of mystery, you see. What could the truth be? The mystery is quickly solved in the first paragraph: the truth is that Thai people don't know what peanut sauce is. What most people think of when it comes to peanut sauce and Thai food is satay. Perfect, because that's exactly what I was looking for in the first place.

So, dinner was Pork Satay with Peanut Thai Sauce. Shannon loved the satay (even had seconds) but I didn't care for it too much, for two reasons. One because of the quality of the curry powder I've bought, it doesn't really do anything for me. It's just a general bland blend of spices that sort of smells like foot. The other reason is because the marinade was very thick and did a good job of sticking to the meat, so once it was cooked some of the marinade had become a texture almost like a paste over the meat. This did help to keep it moist and incredibly tender, but didn't really do anything for me.

I had to substitute the red curry paste for a selection of things that would be in one (dried chili, garlic, coriander, salt and pepper) which probably didn't yield as great of a flavor. By itself I thought the sauce was quite flavorful and unique (the tamarind and coriander especially seemed to go very well with the peanut), but on the satay I thought it was basically like peanut butter. Of course, since the satay is curried it did an excellent job of burning up my taste buds and masking all other flavors, so that stands to reason.

The Thai Cucumber Salad is supposed to help cool the burning sensation and cleanse the palette. I suppose it did. As far as I can tell, this salad serves no greater purpose than that; it's just a simple cucumber salad with vinegar (not particularly flavorful or amazing). I figured I'd use up some of the rice leftover from the Chicken Biryani, so I served the satay on that. Of course, the flavor of the curry and peanut pretty much overwhelmed any flavor from the rice, so I suppose I could've put plain grits on the plate and not noticed any difference.

I bought a package of those tiny bell peppers that turn up in the supermarket every now and then. I wasn't really sure what to do with them, so my first go was just in Salad with Cucumbers. After some research their true purpose has become clear to me: they're meant for stuffing. Of course! It's like a jalapeno popper for the weak. So, since I had an abundance of "crab" leftover from the California Rolls Last Night, I decided to make Crab Stuffed (Mini) Bell Peppers. Unfortunately, I was more wowed by the idea of finding a purpose for these overpriced peppers than the dish itself. I suppose if one had a penchant for both crab and peppers this would be right up their alley, but for the average non-crab, non-pepper fanatic, it is non-exciting.

I went back to the bag of spuds again, which is slowly starting to sprout and must be finished fairly soon. I had a hankerin' (that's what we Albertans call a craving) for caramelized onions, of all things. Potatoes and onions are ideal compliments; why, grandma even planted them next to each other in the garden. Thus, Potatoes with Caramelized Onions was born. It is what it is; having the flavor of sweetened onion and potato (this is a good thing).

Finally, Cauliflower au Gratin. Different and, in some ways, superior to Broccoli au Gratin, this recipe uses cheddar instead of parmesan and emmenthal cheeses. In contrast to the broccoli recipe, I also used skim instead of whole milk this time and, to my surprise, the white sauce actually thickened appropriately. To be honest, I actually think that low-fat cheese might've actually improved the whole lot (less floaty residue from the cheddar).

I've tried to make sushi a small handful of times (4 to be exact, so I suppose a handful for one without thumbs) and I've yet to really get the hang of it. Preparing sushi is an entirely different method of food preparation than what I like to do. It involves actually caring how things are cut to give them uniform shapes, being gentle and patient and there's no oil or butter, so I'm pretty much at a loss.

As you probably recall from my episode with Ahi Tuna, I do not believe that there is such thing as sushi grade fish in my tiny city in Northern Alberta, outside of a sushi bar. So, California Rolls it is. I was a bit worried that Shannon would have a reaction to the imitation crab again, but things seemed to go over well (that is, no trips to the hospital). I have not been historically fond of sushi, but as I acquire a taste for rice vinegar, it's starting to grow on me. I don't think that there was enough vinegar in this recipe to really impart much flavor on the rice, so feel free to adjust it accordingly.

I wish I could offer some tips or suggestions on how to make the whole process easier, but I can't. The instructions I read made little sense until I actually figured out what I was doing. Hindsight is twenty-twenty after that and the whole "tuck and roll" thing seemed to work out a bit better. With only 4 rolls it's hard to really get much experience with the whole process. This was my first time making the inside out rolls. Aside from involving some saran wrap to flip them over, it's basically the same method on a different side. I think I prefer the inside in way of doing things because then I can just pick them up with my hands without getting rice all over my fingers. Chopsticks only work so well, especially when my rolls end up indelibly huge.

After a bunch of feedback on what may have gone wrong with last night's Dhal, I have came to the conclusion that it's because I soaked them for so long in hard water. Apparently the minerals toughen them up and since I soaked them for an extended period of time in my crummy tap water, they became incredibly resistant to any type of cooking method. So now I've learned my lesson! I also have failed to die from salmonella, so today is a pretty good day.

I made Marinated Grilled Quail for dinner tonight. After the bloody chicken ordeal Last Night it was probably a bad idea to cook quail because game fowl is naturally sort of pink when fully cooked. The marinade for this is really nice and simple to make. The honey causes it to burn a bit easily, which is evident in one of the quails, but other than that it's got a nice permeating flavor for the little birds and tastes great with the smoky flavor of the grill.

The pack of quail I picked up was already pre-frozen, so I had to thaw and cook 6. This is more than Shannon and I will likely eat, so I ran some downstairs to my neighbors to eat. As far as I can tell it was accepted fairly well, though one plate went in the fridge for later, which is what I was trying to avoid in the first place. The quail might reheat alright, but the Mushroom Barley Risotto doesn't so much. I seem to recall mentioning this dish before, which means it's clearly one of my favorites.

In fact, it is one of my favorite dishes ever; both for its simplicity and its flavor. I prepared it for some guests on my birthday last year, which is a claim as to how much I enjoy it and how I want to share it with as many people as possible. If you like mushrooms or risotto, this is a dish for you. Of course, this is one of those "the sum of its parts" dishes where the quality of ingredients really matters. Use fresh garlic, great quality mushrooms, real butter and extra virgin olive oil and real chicken stock and you won't be sorry. Unfortunately, I did not have Portobello or crimini mushrooms on hand this time, which really sets this dish apart, but I'm including them in the recipe because they make a huge difference. I cannot give it enough praise, so I'll just explain that it's a beautifully creamy and delicious dish that works with a wide variety of accompaniments or a meal in itself and you won't be disappointed if you make it unless you have an aversion to starch or flavor. Meals like this help me bounce back from unfortunate circumstances like almost killing myself.